


sparks

by orphan_account



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Pining, Technician AU, yeah you read that correctly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-18
Updated: 2019-08-18
Packaged: 2020-09-07 03:14:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20302510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Izumi opened his mouth, working up the nerve to ask for his number, but Makoto all but ran out the door of the café, shooting a quick smile at Izumi. For a terrible moment, it felt like he was losing him all over again.Then an idea, simple yet brilliant, slowly dawned on Izumi.





	sparks

**Author's Note:**

> If this seems ooc it's because it's set post-development when izmk are adults so * dancing * Yeah they're normal now

Izumi was many things.  
Most of them were favourable, in his opinion (he had worked very hard to become someone be is proud of being, after all), and many of them were simple facts: a great dancer, a beautiful model, the list went on.

Perhaps his most hasslesome trait was his penchant to not let go of the past, or rather, what it held inside it. After all, he was a successful model in today's vicious modelling world, with regular shoots and a multitude of fans. Being preoccupied with meaningless things like the past would only cause problems.

And yet, in the quieter moments, such as when he was chopping vegetables or curling on the couch up to watch a movie with a friend, he found his mind drifting back to it.

(Of course, if you really thought hard about it, and Izumi certainly tried his best not to, you would come to understand that it wasn't really the events of his past in general. No, it was flashes of deep emerald eyes and choppy golden hair, playful smiles and brushes of hands…)

Even years later, at the respectable age of twenty, he still found himself gravitating back to those specifics. But that was a hard thing to admit, much harder than labelling it all as 'the past' and shoving it inside himself, so that is what he did. And it worked, for the most part. He lived a relatively satisfying life, enjoying his work, and now that it was off season he found himself with a lot more free time than usual. Izumi was never very fond of free time, preferring to work hard whenever possible, but after a string of important shoots it was a relief to have time to recuperate.

Such as right now, sitting on a bench outside a café, playing absentmindedly with his hair and scanning the horizon for any sign of Ritsu. It was such a typical Ritsu move to invite someone out and then show up late.

When he finally ambled into sight, Izumi immediately narrowed his eyes. "Kuma-kun, you're late, as always. I've been waiting here for almost ten minutes."

"Mhm, sorry Secchan~ Maakun went out earlier, and since he's kinda my alarm clock I ended up oversleeping."

"... It's 12pm."

"Yeah, and? Secchan is so rude, he should praise me for not being even later." Ritsu stretched lethargically and grabbed Izumi's hand, leading him inside the café. "Come on, I need a hot chocolate to wake me up."

"I still don't know how you and Kasa-kun can drink things like that. It's literally liquid sugar, ugh…" He said as they lined up. Ritsu stuck out his tongue at him and bought some biscotti as a snack almost in defiance, and they chose a quiet corner near the door to bicker like an old married couple in peace.

"At least I don't order an iced coffee, no sugar, soy milk, every time I go out. Boooring..."

"First of all, how did you memorize that, you're so annoying... Secondly, I got a pump of hazelnut today instead of my regular, so." Izumi mixed his drink with his straw as he let his eyes wander around the café. It was a small but comfortable one, mostly used by locals or older patrons, so Izumi didn't have to worry about getting recognised all that much.

That is, until his eyes landed on one face. One very important face that he hadn't seen for many years.

Yuuki Makoto was sitting in the same room as him, at a table at the far end of the café.

Izumi's heart immediately started pounding, and his stomach dropped. Was this a dream? He hadn't seen Makoto since before he quit being a model, but he had heard that he left for a college outside of town a year or two ago. What was he doing here?

"Wow, so adventurous~" Ritsu teased, though his words fell on deaf ears. "You really… Hm? Secchan?" Noticing his expression, he followed his gaze over to the other side of the room. "Oh, it's Maakun. What is he doing here?"

Sure enough, when Izumi blinked and he reassessed the situation, he could see that Makoto was sitting beside Ritsu's husband, Mao, adding another dose of surrealism to the already-surreal situation.

"Come on, let's go say hi." Ritsu stood up, but Izumi's hand shot out and grabbed his arm.

"No, Kuma-kun wait, that's- The guy beside him, that's… that's Yuukun." Izumi took deep breaths, and Ritsu cocked his head, thinking, before his eyes widened.

"Yuukun… the Yuukun that you always talk about?" (Izumi winced; he thought he did a fairly good job of not bringing him up). "That's one of Maakun's friends, though I've never personally met him. What are you gonna do?"

"I… I don't know yet."

Ritsu glanced back over at their table. "Well, I think you should decide quickly, because they've noticed us."

Surely enough, when Izumi raised his head to look at them again, Mao's face was lit up and he was pointing Makoto towards them.  
Then their eyes met.

_Yuukun still hasn't dropped his bad habit of wearing ugly glasses_, Izumi thought distantly. Then Makoto offered a tentative smile, and he fell just as hard as he had all those years ago. Izumi blushed furiously as he and Mao made their way over to their table.

Ritsu, who had sat back down, now rose to smile warmly at his husband. "Ah, Maakun~. This is unexpected."

Izumi followed him up awkwardly, and for once, found no words in his mouth. He had no idea what to say, or rather, there were too many things to say to possibly choose one. Makoto was silent too, alternating from quick glances from Izumi to the floor, then back to Izumi.

"So, is Maakun going to introduce his friend…?" Ritsu shot a pointed look at Makoto.

"Oh, yeah! This is Makoto, we went to school together. And, ah, who's this?" He said, turning to Izumi. Ritsu's husband wore a carefree smile, completely oblivious to the situation at hand.

"This is Izumi, but you can call him Secchan. He's a super hot model~ Say hi, Secchan!"

Izumi rolled his eyes, then found the courage to bring them up to meet Makoto's, who was watching him with an unreadable expression. His eyes were as vibrant as ever, deep and green.  
"So it really is you, huh… Hi."

"Izumi-san? Um, hello.. "

"Secchan and Yuukun are childhood friends. Let's give them a minute." Ritsu winked at Izumi as he dragged Mao away, and Makoto blinked at the nickname coming from Ritsu's mouth.  
Izumi sat down and stared into his coffee.

"Ah, my coat is at the other table… One second!" Izumi watched Makoto nod sheepishly at him before darting back to get his coat. He noted offhandedly that Makoto had a very nice figure; he must have been keeping in shape after modelling. He seemed to be wearing some kind of uniform.

Izumi fidgeted nervously - he really had no idea how to handle this. The two hadn't talked since their last fight.  
At last, he let himself think about it, going through every little detail in his mind.  
Makoto had been acting distant, changing into someone that Izumi didn't know, avoiding him and not responding to his texts as much. Eventually Izumi blew up at him in an old dressing room, and he ran before Izumi could even comprehend the horrible things he had said to Makoto.

Not long after, Makoto dropped out of modelling, and they never spoke another word to each other.  
But here he was now, sitting back down at his table, looking just as nervous as Izumi did. Izumi wouldn't let himself be hopeful just yet, but…

It was hard not to be hopeful when Yuukun smiled like that, and regarded him with what seemed like a fond gaze that Izumi no doubt mirrored in his own eyes.

The two sat in silence for a moment or two before Makoto broke the silence with, of all things, "I'm not sure why I got this frappe. I've never liked mocha."It was so ridiculous that Izumi released a helpless giggle, and Makoto smiled, seemingly relieved.

"This hazelnut flavouring isn't really working for me either… Hey, do you want some biscotti?" He pushed Ritsu's unopened packet towards Makoto, but he shook his head.

"Nah, thanks. I don't really have time, I have to get back to work soon…Um, Izumi-san, how are you?"

"I'm okay. Still modelling, and I'm happy with my college courses, and whatever. Anyway, Yuukun, I've- Well, I wanted to say-"

"Izumi-san." Makoto was staring at him with a meaningful expression on his face, and Izumi found himself unable to look away. "I know what you're going to say, and... I've grown, y'know? I'm not the same person I was back then."

"No, ugh, I mean-" the internal struggle between Izumi's guilt and his pride was all-consuming. "You didn't do anything wrong, so why are you saying that? It was my fault, okay? I'm sorry." It was a relief to finally say these words after so long.  
"But… I've grown too."

"Ah, that's good." Makoto checked his watch, and cursed lightly. "I'm really sorry to leave, but I'm already late, and I think my boss is really gonna hex me this time…" He babbled, grabbing his coat and chugging his frappe, before taking a moment to finally look at Izumi again. "I'm, um, really happy to see you again, Izumi-san. Have a good day!"

Izumi opened his mouth, working up the nerve to ask for his number, but Makoto all but ran out the door. For a terrible moment, it felt like he was losing him all over again, before his gaze dropped to the uniform shirt tied around his waist.  
The logo was small, but he recognised it; most companies in this town were local, and the logo Makoto donned could be found on the outside of a tech and IT store named Rocket Start, not too far from the café.

An idea, simple yet brilliant, slowly dawned on Izumi.

_____

A few days later, he decided to put this plan into place.

"Hey, Leo-kun, where do we keep the screwdrivers?"  
Izumi rooted around the cupboard under the sink, confused. He was sure he had put it back here the last time he had to fix a lightbulb. After two years of living together for college, it was accepted that he was the designated lightbulb changer.

Leo popped his head around the door, looking distracted. 'Hm? How should I know? You're the handyman, Sena!~"

"Tch, only because you're useless at fixing things… are you sure you didn't take it for one of your weird projects?"

"Eh? I would definitely- Oh. Wait." Leo ran down the corridor to his room, and a distant rustling could be heard from it. Izumi was always chastising him about running inside and making too much noise; He had taken to knitting things for the old ladies downstairs sometimes to make up for it.

He emerged, surely enough, with the screwdriver in his hand. "Wahaha, I forgot I had used it for a conducting baton. Here!☆" He handed it to Izumi with the flourish he does everything with. "Why do you need it, anyway? Using it as a baton really inspires me!"

"For my computer. They have screws, right?"

"Waah? Last time I checked it was working fine though?!"

"Yeah, that's the problem." Izumi strode into his room and approached his computer, wielding the screwdriver as one would a weapon.

The plan was simple. Break computer, call the technician company, wait for Makoto to materialise on his doorstep.

"Sena, you're acting even weirder than usual… are the aliens back? Or could this have anything to do with meeting your Yuukun again?"

Izumi's burst of joy at the phrase 'your Yuukun' was vastly overshadowed by Leo's unexpected knowledge of the encounter.  
'How… Leo-kun, how the hell do you know that I ran into Yuukun?"

Leo stuck out his tongue at the harsh tone. "Rittsu texted me about it~ it filled me with inspiration, estranged friends at the hands of fate… wahaha, truly an amazing story! It could be a song!"

"Gross, don't turn my problems into a song.... Actually, do you think you could clear out for a couple hours later? I want the apartment to myself."

"You could've told me earlier! Stupid Sena…"

"So is that a no, or..."

"Whatever Sena wants, Sena gets! Just kidding, but I was going exploring anyway. You got lucky, wahaha ☆."

Izumi doesn't even want to know what exploring means, but doesn't have time to ask, since moments later Leo returns to scrawling songs on his bedposts. Izumi had to threaten him into not turning a portion of the sitting room wall into a makeshift music sheet, so now Leo has resorted to decorating his bedframe with frenzied lyrics whenever there's no paper handy.

Okay, back to work. Izumi pulled the computer back from the wall and loosened a few screws. Inside the computer was a world Izumi knew nothing about; wires, circuits, buttons, all arranged in formations that bemused him. But hopefully a certain someone could help him out, assisting him when…

A wire accidentally falls out, Izumi thought, pulling a random green wire out of its clip, and replacing the back of the computer. Surely enough, the computer wouldn't respond to the power button. Izumi allowed himself a small satisfied smile before dialling the number of the technician company.

"Hello, this is Rocket Start, how may we assist you Today?"

Izumi was a tad taken aback by the man's strange tone, but he had a pretty soothing voice otherwise.  
"Well, my damn computer won't turn on, and I was hoping you could send someone to take a look at it?"

"Of Course. Just give me your address, and a technician will be at your door Shortly."

Izumi thanked the man with the strange vocal tic and hung up. For some reason, he hadn't stopped to consider that the technician might be someone other than Makoto, but he knew from Google that the company was pretty small, so...

A ding from the kitchen indicated his cookies were ready, and he abandoned his train of thought to remove them from the oven. Makoto had always had a sweet tooth, Izumi remembered with equal measures of exasperation and endearment.  
Well, if that was what he liked, Izumi would be happy to provide (not that Izumi would eat anything that wasn't calory-checked to the heavens). The thought of Makoto eating anything that he had lovingly baked for him already had him dizzy.

After defending the freshly baked cookies from Leo's searching hands, finally saved when he gave up in favour of going 'exploring', Izumi put on his best pair of form-fitting jeans - he hadn't done all those squats for nothing - he sat at the kitchen table and waited.

_____

It felt like forever until the knock at the door finally arrived, and Izumi confined himself to speedwalking through the apartment. A cursory glance at the mirror in the hall revealed that he looked pretty, as always. He practised his smile one last time before opening the door, the butterflies in his chest serenading the man outside that, sure enough, was Makoto.

Izumi had almost forgotten that Makoto wasn't expecting to see him. Makoto's face immediately dropped from a fixed smile to an expression of utter shock.  
"I-Izumi-san? Woah, of all people!"

Izumi had been told that he was not a great actor many times in his life, by friends and colleagues and enemies alike. That didn't mean he wouldn't try his very best, though. "Ah, Yuukun, what are the chances! I guess it really is fate!"

Makoto smiled, a small gesture that Izumi was slowly learning was his trademark. "Heh. Something like that, I suppose~"

Izumi felt heat rising to his cheeks, so he turned away. "Come on in, it's this way."

He led Makoto down the hall (maybe swaying his hips a tad more than he usually does), but Makoto stopped momentarily faltered in the kitchen, visibly enamoured and sniffing the air.  
"Izumi-san, what's that smell?

"Smell? Do you mean these freshly baked chocolate chip cookies?" He brandished the cooling tray with what was definitely not a practised flourish. "You can have one now, if you want~"

Makoto laughed quietly, but shook his head. "Nah, it's okay. I'll have some later, after I've worked hard!"

Izumi couldn't help but smile, and placed them down. "Good decision. We can have our own little tea party afterwards, fufu…"

When Makoto was faced with the actual computer, his demeanour changed, and he donned a serious expression. He really was passionate about this job, Izumi supposed… Maybe his decision to leave the modelling world wasn't for naught.

While Izumi lounged on his bed, Makoto immediately set to work, checking the power button before turning the monitor around. He removed a screwdriver from his equipment belt, and faltered when he saw that the screws were already somewhat loose, but continued to work anyway. Izumi watched him idly, revelling in the situation.

_Yuukun is in my room. Yuukun wants to eat the cookies I baked. Yuukun is in my room._

Izumi smiled smugly, mentally patting himself on the back for his amazing plan.

That is, until Makoto turned to him, confused.

"Izumi-san? I think I've found what's wrong with your computer-"

"Wow, Yuukun works so fast! Good work~"

"Thanks, but what I was gonna say is- it looks like one of the wires here has been intentionally pulled out? It's usually secured with a clip, and since its the only one that's disconnected..."

Izumi froze. "W-what are you insinuating? Tch, as if I would break my own computer on purpose…" He turned away, occupying himself with a painting on his wall. Wow, those reds in the foreground worked really well with the blue tones.

"Ah, I wasn't insinuating anything? I'm sorry that it came off that way, I was just making an observation, y'know?" He fiddled with the loose green wire, securing it back into its clip, and tried the power button again.

When the screen lit up, Makoto broke into a smile, and it occurred to Izumi that he had smiled more today than he had in the entire months leading up to their childhood conflict. He blinked, trying to swallow the sudden rush of emotion that only Makoto had ever been able to stir in him.

"Izumi-san? Are you okay?" Makoto noticed his strange expression, and cocked his head slightly in what may have been the cutest way ever.

"Yeah, don't worry about me, Yuukun. More importantly, you did such a good job, so now it's time for snacks~"

"Those cookies you baked earlier? Ah, they smell so good, I can't wait♪"

"Mhm. Come on, I think we have tea and coffee too…"

Makoto followed Izumi into the kitchen, eager to help. "Mmm, coffee sounds good. I can do it myself, though, it's okay!"

"You sit down, Yuukun." Izumi waved a teaspoon at him. "You've helped me out, so let me take care of you for a bit, hmm?"

Makoto placed his toolkit on the table and inched towards the cookies.  
"Hehe, if you say so~ I like milk and sugar, but if that's too much trouble I don't mind it black?"

"It's no problem, help yourself to some cookies too. You earned them." Izumi hummed, content to look after him, even if it was only making sure he had some food. Makoto's sunniness had illuminated his life, and feeling that warmth again made it hard to not dote on him. It was the least he could do to cook for him.

"Ah, but I didn't really do all that much? I just reconnected a wire… Not that I don't appreciate this though!"

"Haah? Don't undervalue your work, or I'll get mad. That's one more wire than I could've fixed." He placed Makoto's coffee on the table, and seated himself opposite him, sipping his glass of water.

"So, Yuukun," he continued. "We never got a chance to finish our conversation, did we... How have you been?"

Makoto chewed happily on his cookie before responding. "I'm good! You probably already know, but I quit modelling a while ago, and I went to college for a bit before doing an apprenticeship, and now I'm a computer technician! I know it's probably boring compared to your life, but I'm happy~"

"Is that so? Well, if you're happy, then I guess I'm happy. Why did you stop modelling though? You have so much potential."

A cloud passed over Makoto's content demeanour, and he took a while to respond, lost in thought. "Ah… It's kind of like- I didn't really recognise who I was anymore, after a while. I was just a face. It made me unhappy." He said honestly.

Izumi was a bit taken aback. For as long as he'd known him, Makoto was honest but careful, not wanting to 'burden' others with negative things. Maybe he felt the same comfort and easiness with Izumi as he did with Makoto.

"Yuukun…" Izumi's eyes flickered to Makoto's, suddenly shy. "You've never been 'just a face'. I'm sorry if I acted like that when we were younger. I know better now."

"It's okay. It wasn't just you who said things like that, it was everyone we knew. I know that you were just trying to look out for me, even if it was misguided. Ah, this might sound forward, but…"  
Makoto leaned a bit closer to him over the table, gaze intense, and Izumi blushed furiously.  
"I'm excited to get to know the new you, the one who's grown."

Makoto's confidence made Izumi melt, but what made it even more endearing was the nervous tremor, barely noticeable, in his voice. Izumi pinched himself quickly under the table, just to double check this wasn't a dream.

"I- Yes. Me too." Izumi squeaked, averting his eyes to the diminished plate of cookies. Makoto took another one, humming lightly.

They talked their way through three cups of coffee, and not once did Izumi say something wrong, or overstep his boundaries. In the past, his touchy-feeliness with Makoto had been at the source of a few minor conflicts, but now, when Izumi nudged Makoto's leg with his own, Makoto smiled lightly.

This really is heaven, Izumi thought happily.

All good things must come to an end, though, and when Makoto's phone buzzed in his pocket, he read the new message almost regrettably, and hurriedly scribbled something on what looked like a receipt.  
"Woah, I forgot I was still on the clock… Izumi-san, this was really fun! Thank you for the cookies♪"

"What's your number?" Izumi was determined to ask properly this time. After all, that had been the entire purpose of his plan.

But Makoto faltered, and Izumi mentally kicked himself. Of course Makoto wouldn't want to exchange numbers. Izumi must've misunderstood when he talked about getting to know him.

"Ah, its okay. Nevermind. Um, I'll see you around." He turned away from Makoto, busying himself with clearing the cups and plates away.

"No! Izumi-san, I… agh, my plan has been ruined." He chuckled defeatedly. "Here."

Makoto walked over and handed him what appeared to be a reciept, except it had a small number scrawled at the top. A phone number.

Makoto's phone number.

Izumi's knees wobbled slightly as he stared at it.  
"I miss you." He blurted out, almost by accident. In his defense, his brain was short circuiting right now.

Maybe it was wishful thinking, but Izumi could've sworn Makoto blushed a little.  
"I… I miss you too. I'll text you, okay? Or you can text me. Whatever works." He gifted Izumi with one last grin before he stepped out the door. "See you, Izumi-san~ ♪"

"Bye, Yuukun. Have a good day." He could barely answer, mind still on overdrive. After he closed the door, he immediately sank down beside it, pinching himself just one more time for good measure.

He glanced at Makoto's number again, and a giant smile blossomed on his face. As soon as he could physically get off the ground and get to his phone, he would register it. But at that moment, he was content to sit there with as dreamy expression plastered on his face.

He really should start breaking his electronics more often.

**Author's Note:**

> izumako gay ♡... Yes I edited the excerpt for the summary. Don't look at me *throws a chair at you*


End file.
